Welcome to Modern Quilt Month ! part 3

We're celebrating Modern Quilt Month at Q.I., and we couldn't be more excited about these fun quilts!  So, what makes a quilt modern? According to The Modern Quilt Guild, the characteristics may include the use of bold colors and prints, high contrast, graphic areas of solid color, improvisational piecing, minimalism, and expansive negative space.  This is the third of five feature posts.

Note: please check out our E-Bay shop for great bargains on quilt patterns and collectibles ! For continuous free quilt patterns, please visit us on Twitter !

Decision Tree, 25 x 37", by Randa Mulford

Randa Mulford began this quilt in a workshop with Rosalie Dace at Art Quilt Tahoe.  About the title, "Decision Tree", Randa says:  Approaching an opportunity to retire (and the age for wearing purple and red!), I realized that life is really a series of decisions.  Some have trivial consequences, whle others are more significant, each an opportunity.  Every "leaf" on the tree represents a decision or opportunity." Each of the leaves on Decision Tree is unique and beautiful, made with different fabrics and embellishments (shown below).

Lilac City, 29 x 29", by Joni Strother

Joni Strother began Lilac City in a workshop with Colleen Wise titled "Emerald City." Lilac City is machine pieced and quilted.  Joni Says, "Colleen was such an interesting and fun person with whom to spend time and learn."  Colleen is the author of Casting Shadows: Creating Visual Dimension in Your Quilts.  Notice how Joni's quilt has darker purple strips at the right and bottom edges of each block, which creates the appearance of a shadow (shown below), which adds a three-dimensional look to the quilt.

Riotous Stripes, 46 x 52",  by Joy Palmer

Joy Palmer started this quilt by making strata of various solid material in greens and purples.  Then she cut up the strata strips into blocks and half-square triangles.  She says, "It was a lot of fun and very challenging to arrange my blocks into the finished quilt." Joy Palmer quilted Riotous Stripes with straight lines which bring all the blocks together.  She says, "I am not really a fan of the color purple, but it is growing on me!"

Liberty Skyline by Teddie Brannin, quilted by Jeannie Rogers

Liberty Skyline was awarded First Place in the Modern Quilt category, along with a special ribbon for Exemplary Machine Quilting - Computer Guided at the 2019 Quilt Arizona show.  Teddie says, "My skyline quilt is a fascination of mine on bringing different colors and patterns together to make a simple block pattern intriguing. I love the evening skyline with glimmering lights."

The quilt was inspired by Tula Pink’s “Skyline” layout from the book, Tula Pink’s City Sampler: 100 Modern Quilt Blocks. Note how Jeannie Rogers' quilting extends the vertical lines of the blocks, creating the appearance of a skyline.  Each block is unique and beautiful, and it must have been fun to arrange these blocks.

Circles by Lora Riordan

Lora Riordan's Circles quilt was created for the Riley Blake Fabric Challenge with the black and white fabric.  The circles were created with machine reverse applique. Lora quilted this modern piece herself, using an echo quilting design that surrounds each circle.  We love the way the quilting lines overlap, which adds a feeling of energy to this modern design!

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2019 Santa Clara Valley Quilters Guild show (Decision Tree, Lilac City, Riotous Stripes) and the 2019 Quilt Arizona show (Liberty Skyline, Circles).

Welcome to Modern Quilt Month! Part 2

We're celebrating Modern Quilt Month at Q.I., and we couldn't be more excited about these fun quilts!  So, what makes a quilt modern? According to The Modern Quilt Guild, the characteristics may include the use of bold colors and prints, high contrast, graphic areas of solid color, improvisational piecing, minimalism, and expansive negative space.  This is the second of five feature posts.

Note: please check out our E-Bay shop for great bargains on quilt patterns and collectibles ! For continuous free quilt patterns, please visit us on Twitter !

Ombre Blossoms by Ellen Born, quilted by Monty Richardson

Ellen explains, "Ombre Blossoms was created using the [color] gradation fabrics, arranging the various colors to create star blossoms in varying hues. "

Ellen's use of softly colored ombre fabrics give her quilt such a pretty sparkle. This quilt is made using a 60 degree diamond ruler for cutting and strip piecing. The Ombre Blossoms pattern by Krista Moser plus the ruler are available for purchase online at Amazon.

Daydream by Laura Flagler

Laura notes, "This is a visual commentary on creative rumination culminating towards an idea. [It's] assembled with improve piecing to simulate the textures of paint on canvas."

The various pieces of this inward-spiraling pattern are meant to symbolize fragments of thoughts as they coalesce into a sequence of ideas. Laura's quilt is an inspiring and most interesting comment on the workings of the human mind.

Fleur by Melissa Winona, quilted by Kimmie Tanner

Laura writes, "My sister says that [the creation of] Fleur was my subconscious designing a flower.
I didn't see the flower in this design until after we added the fabrics. This pattern may be found on our On Williams Street site at Etsy."

This gigantic contemporary flower looks like so much fun to make !

The Boyfriend Quilt by Kimberly Davis

Kimberly remarks, "I was drawn to this pattern's simplicity and bold use of solid fabrics."  (We recognize this basic design as the City Park pattern by Cherry House Quilts.) Kimberly quilted her creation herself, using gently undulating lines which complement and enhance the modern geometric arrangement of the square blocks.

Kimberly did a great job in selecting these richly saturated hues which are both restful and energetic, allowing her quilt to fit right in with many different room decors.

Tequila Sunset by Gina Miller

Gina says, "Colors of valley sunsets off the back porch are captured in fabric and expressed in modern blocks."

We love these "sherbet" colors of peach, mango, tangerine, strawberry, and lime, which really pop right off the background of the quilt. The creative "en pointe" setting gives the blocks and the adjacent cornerstones a very eye-catching contemporary chain effect.

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2019 Quilt Arizona show.

Welcome to Modern Quilt Month!

We're celebrating Modern Quilt Month at Q.I., and we couldn't be more excited about these fun quilts!  So, what makes a quilt modern? According to The Modern Quilt Guild, the characteristics may include the use of bold colors and prints, high contrast, graphic areas of solid color, improvisational piecing, minimalism, and expansive negative space.  This is the first of five feature posts.

Note: please check out our E-Bay shop for great bargains on quilt patterns and collectibles ! For continuous free quilt patterns, please visit us on Twitter !   

Empire Place by Charlene O'Connell

This stunning paper-pieced Empire Place quilt was made by Mardi Norwood, and quilted by Charlene O' Connell.  Charlene explains, "Mardi Norwood was doing a massive downsize and decided to give me this quilt.  I was very honored that she wanted to give it to me and thrilled that I got to quilt it."  The Empire Place quilt pattern is by Kristy Wolf and her daughter Shayla Wolf at Sassafras Lane Designs.

A Sky Full of Stars by Kimberly Davis

This hexagon design quilt was named A Sky Full of Stars for a year of Coldplay concerts in Pasadena (California) and Phoenix (Arizona) and a trip to Kitt Peak National Observatory outside of Tucson.  The quilt was based on a workshop taken with pattern maker Libs Elliott (the design is called The Weight of Love). Many of the beautiful indigo fabrics are by Alison Glass.

Which Way Did They Go by Patti Kupferer

This quilt may appear to be minimalist, until you examine the intricate quilting!  It is the first of a series by Patti Kupferer, and it showcases her longarm quilting skills.  An original design, she created the quilting pattern based on a stained-glass window and used various fills for the sections.  The orange thread really 'pops' on the gray background fabric.

Edward by Marjory Peck

We love the Picasso-like faces in Edward ! Marjory Peck says, "As an applique artist that is losing hand dexterity I was looking for a way to continue my work without hand applique.  I used this piece to teach myself machine applique with turned edges."  Marjory quilted this piece herself, and the result is impressive.

Poppin' In by Jane Congleto, professional quilted by Chris Sousa

We love optical illusion quilts, and apparently so does Jane Congleton!  She says, "I've always liked 3D and geometric quilts.  it was a challenge! It is my first quilt show entry [and] I really like it!" The beautifully-pieced quilt is based on the Convex Illusions pattern by Kathleen Andrews. 

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2019 Quilt Arizona show.

Happy 4th of July 2019!

The birthday of the United States of America — Independence Day — is celebrated on the Fourth of July. The holiday commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. In honor of the holiday, we've selected a few outstanding red, white and blue quilts from this year's shows.

Note: please check out our E-Bay shop for great bargains on quilt patterns and collectibles ! For continuous free quilt patterns, please visit us on Twitter !  

Vintage Block of the Month, 78 x 84", by Robbie Groves, quilted by Carol Dockery

We love all the fun baskets, stars, birds, pinwheels, and churn dash blocks in this sampler quilt! Robbie Groves says, "This was a Block of the Month class taught at The Granary [a quilt shop in Sunnyvale, California].  I could not resist making it using my favorite colors from my stash.  It was a fun class."  The design, by Barbara J. Eikmeier, was inspired by antique random block sampler quilts from the late 1800s.

Liberty Garden by Linda Wood, quilted by Jessica Gamez

There are so many wonderful appliqued elements in this quilt! Linda Wood says that she enjoys doing hand applique, and she loves Lisa DeBee Schiller's patterns.  The quilt won a ribbon for Third Place in the Applique - Small category at the 2019 Quilt Arizona show.  Our favorite block is the flag shown below.

America in the New Millennium, 53 x 55", by Brenda Feltham, quilted by Brenda Feltham

The use of flag fabric really makes these stars sparkle.  Brenda Feltham says, "I made and hand quilted this quilt in 2001.  The white fabric has the year 2000 printed on it.  It's an earlier work and not paper pieced so the points are not all perfect.  I finished this quilt in July with hopes for the future.  After 9/11, I hung it in my office as a reminder that we are all American strong."

Image credits:  Photos were taken at the 2019 Santa Clara Valley Quilt Association show (California) and at the Quilt Arizona show.

More Scrap Quilt Inspiration !

It's time for some scrap quilt inspiration! What a great opportunity to sort through your stash and use your imagination to create beautiful blocks from remnants of fabric. Here are some of our favorites !

(Note: please check out our E-Bay shop for great bargains on quilt patterns and collectibles ! For continuous free quilt patterns, please visit us on Twitter !) 

Spiderweb by Amy Witherow, California

Amy explains, "The quilt front was started in Jean Impey's class, 'Spider Web'. The quilt back was started in Fern Royce's class, 'Working Small.' Obviously, I wasn't working small here, but part of the class was about using scraps, and I had a bunch of half-square triangle strips. I decided to see what they'd do in a Log Cabin design."

We recognize many of these fabrics, including some Kaffe Fassett favorites! The secret to this quilt's success is to have enough neutral off-white background so that the viewer's eye can easily see all the different fabrics in the foreground. These blocks are nicely spaced so that each individual block stands out clearly, with plenty of contrast.

Wonky Nine Patch no. 2 by LaNelle Wilkinson, California

LaNelle writes, "Since 2012, I have periodically made wonky 9-patch quilt blocks and saved them for a 'someday I'll finish this quilt' project. In 2018, I finished a queen-sized quilt for me bed and had blocks to spare."

LaNelle continues, "Those leftover blocks inspired me to make this smaller quilt  (size 50 x 77). I love the bright colors, and the quilt makes me happy." We too love these pretty colors, which provide a contrast that really makes LaNelle's quilt sparkle.

Adventures in Sewing by Bonnie Bobman, quilted by Cindy Stohn

Bonnie says, "Clean out time ! Starting with no plan, each round was determined based on the existing layout. Piecing it in the studio, an RV, and ironing on a campground table made this quilt a travel memory."

One of the fun things about a scrap quilt like this is looking at all the different fabrics, remembering where they came from, and remembering which projects they were used for. There are lots of intriguing prints and varied colors in Bonnie's quilt.

Scrappy Strings by Celeste Johnson, Arizona. Quilted by Melissa Turner

Honorable Mention winner in the Scrap Quilt category at the 2019 Quilt Arizona Show,  Celeste notes, " I saw a similar quilt on Pinterest and thought this quilt would use up my large collection of strings. Ha Ha, this quilt barely made a dent in the scraps."

Celeste cleverly used her black and white scraps to make very contemporary sashing pieces. The sashing does a great job of making the clear, bright pastel colors of the blocks really "pop'' into the foreground.

Quilt of Many Colors by Carol Kananen, California

Carol states, "At the last quilt show, I bought six fat quarters of single color batiks. Then I went home to "shop" in my batik stash for coordinating prints. I sewed strips together from light to dark, and this is the result."

Carol's quilt is size 29" x 35", which makes an eye-catching wall quilt, as well as a very colorful table-topper. The variety of warm and cool hues makes it perfect for all seasons and home decors.

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2019 Santa Clara Valley Quilt Association show (Spiderweb, Wonky Nine Patch, Quilt of Many Colors, Adventures in Sewing) and the 2019 Quilt Arizona show (Scrappy Strings).